Cold Spring Harbor, NY - June 24, 2016 - “We’re running out of East,” says Howard Pickerell in a new video released this week by The Nature Conservancy on Long Island.
Pickerell, a boat builder and bayman, is one of eleven Long Island residents featured in a video series called “Our Island, Our Water, Our Future” who speaks about their life on the water and their concerns with diminishing water quality.
The videos, produced in high definition, tell the stories of Long Islanders from Freeport to Montauk and their personal connections to the water – from the chef from Greenport to the mayor from Mastic Beach or the “junk man” from Freeport. Each five-minute video shares a different perspective about the island, its water bodies and what needs to be done to restore these waters.
The videos are available for viewing online and are available for distribution to wider audiences across the island.
“Unless you are at a fish kill or on site of an algae bloom, water quality is not something we can see,” explained Senior Marine Scientist Carl LoBue of The Nature Conservancy, whose passion for fishing is featured in one of the videos. “We wanted to bring the story of our waters to a wider audience. Each and every one of us is affected by water quality here; it’s our most precious natural asset and we all have a role to play in protecting it.”
The video series, beautifully shot in a cinematographic style by Patchogue-based Red Vault Productions, is meant to raise awareness and inspire others to help change the status quo.
“The issue of nitrogen pollution on Long Island is a serious, yet solvable problem,” said Executive Director Nancy Kelley of The Nature Conservancy on Long Island. “As an organization, we have been pushing for amendments to codes, allocations of public financing and adoption of changes in the way we treat wastewater in our homes and businesses. But it requires more than just the backing of enlightened officials. We need everyone to support solving this issue.”
The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. On Long Island, The Nature Conservancy has helped to preserve more than 150,000 acres and is working to restore our network of bays and harbors. Visit on the web here.